Champion of champions

This article first appeared in the Sep/Oct 2016 issue of WGM.

Images: Ian Javier

WGM Managing Editor Ben Blaschke catches up with Sam Razavi as the most dominant player on the Asian poker scene guns for a fifth consecutive Asian Poker Tour Player of the Year title.

Ben Blaschke: You won a record fourth APT Player of the Year (POY) title in 2015 and are now locked in a battle to try and win your fifth in 2016. Is the POY title your main goal heading into each year or is that secondary to individual tournament results?
Sam Razavi: Of course the most sensible goal each year is to continue to show a profit, however big or small that might be. Then come the more ambitious goals of winning a World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet or a similarly prestigious event. Since winning my third back-to-back APT POY, winning that title has become a given and a primary goal each year.

Winning the fourth title, I feel a great deal of satisfaction that each year I have achieved my goal through hard work and commitment and I don’t think I will stop gunning for it until the year that I legitimately lose the race. I try my best now to fit my poker year around the APT calendar.

BB: Your record of seven event wins and 27 cashes in 2015 was impressive, but the season actually started a bit slowly for you.
SR: I found it hard to get going at the beginning of the year. I was running deep but falling where it mattered. [Fellow player] Lester Edoc absolutely tore it up in Cebu and continued his form in Manila.

I started to feel like the race was lost before it had begun. But [Japanese player] Iori Yogo became the main threat as the year progressed – both Iori and I started racking up the results and as we took over the top two spots it really was a back and forth struggle.

It’s really important to be able to take the lead in the POY race. That’s the psychology of the game just like in any other sport I suppose. The mindset of going into a series with the goal of maintaining the number one spot as opposed to reaching it, coupled with the fact that you know everyone gunning for POY has to try and catch you instead of avoiding you – it’s a great boost to the confidence and can really help with the way you perform.

BB: The most memorable stop during last year’s APT was the second visit to Cebu where you managed to win four separate side events. I’m not aware of any player having won four side events anywhere before. What are your memories of that week as it progressed?
SR: After winning the Charity Event, I ended up 3-handed in the Pot Limit Omaha Event with my then fiancée, now my wife, Menchu and a guy who has since gone on to become a good friend, Jason Powers. I back-doored the nut flush into Jason’s second nut flush and that left me with a huge chip advantage over Menchu. PLO is her game though and I didn’t want to double her up, so heads-up took quite some time before we managed to get it all in pre-flop.

Once I won that and slept on the couch that evening, I was well aware that I hadn’t cashed in another event that week so on Hendon Mob (a database showing tournament results of all poker players) I would be showing two straight wins. So I knew if I made it to the money in another event I really had to win to make it three in a row! The third win was kind of fortunate given it was a turbo and anything can happen, but I managed to flop top pair vs top pair, as I do, with a dominating kicker to make it three trophies in a row. After that I obviously wanted to make it a fourth before the week was out and I managed it in the last event of the series. The last hand was really lucky, I remember barely covering my opponent and we managed to get all in on the flop. I had a straight and 10-high flush draw on the flop with no pair and was up against a dominating Queen-high flush draw. I hit a 10 on the turn which held. Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good!

BB: Did it all feel a bit surreal or was it simply a case of being in the zone?
SR: I’m used to running deep multiple times in a stop these days so it wasn’t as surreal as it might have otherwise been. But it was definitely exciting for me as it played out because I really wanted to see how long I could keep the streak going. I also knew Lester Edoc had won three titles in Cebu at the opening stop so I was aware that four in a row would be another record, so there was some extra motivation there. I also just ran really pure!

BB: You skipped the Main Event at the APT Finale in Manila which allowed you to play a number of side events and therefore maximize your points potential. How much thought goes into planning your schedule as the season progresses and particularly as the last few events approach?
SR: I think it’s really a testament not only to the abilities but the character of Iori Yogo that I decided to skip the Main Event. Not once in all four races have I adjusted my schedule based on my perceived threat of a player. I knew given the great structures that the APT now have in place that should I run deep in the Main Event I would be missing out on a load of side events – and should Iori choose to focus on the sides or indeed bust the Main Event early it would be open season for him if I was still stuck playing the Main.

At that point, once you have fought a whole year to win the race, the number one spot is the ultimate goal at the finale – even if the Main Event payout is worth five times the prize for winning POY.

BB: Did you feel any pressure or put any pressure on yourself as the final few stops of the season were approaching?
SR: I don’t usually feel pressured in these races, more anxiousness I think. When I go into an APT stop ahead in the points race I just try to focus on staying ahead, and when I go in behind I try my best to get in front. I will keep a close eye on how the other top five spots are getting on throughout the week but there’s nothing I can do to affect those results. It’s the breaks in between when I’m gearing up for the next stop that I ponder and get anxious about how things might turn out!

BB: Your record now over the four years stands at 19 titles from 77 cashes in APT events. How do you explain your incredible success when playing under the APT banner?
SR: I think there are two main factors involved. Firstly and most importantly, I’ve come to know all the regulars on the tour. It helps that virtually every table I sit and play at there are at least one or two players I have played against and already have notes on. Secondly, I really feel at home playing on the APT. It’s not like the WSOP or similar where I really feel like I’m going for work and have to be really serious about it.

Of course, I still work hard but it feels more like a family affair than going to an event with a bunch of strangers I’ve never played with before. If I’m enjoying myself I definitely play better. I get really grumpy if I find myself playing against people that are highly antisocial and take the game far too seriously, although that has happened to me a few times on the APT.

There’s a quote I heard at school when I was 13 or 14 and it has stuck with me all my life: “Choose a job you enjoy and you won’t work a day in your life.” I really think people that take the game as seriously as they do are doing themselves a huge disservice. You can’t thrive in a profession if you take the enjoyment out of it and I don’t see how you can thrive as a human being if you take the fun out of living.

BB: You also reached your first WSOP final table in 2015 as well as cashing in another two WSOP events. Were you pleased with your results?
SR: Any final table at the WSOP is a result to be happy with since it means you are more than likely leaving Vegas with some profit. I was happy with my play in general, I felt I played solid throughout and didn’t make many mistakes. I was a bit disappointed with my run in the Planet Hollywood Main Event. I registered right at the end of the last Day 1 flight, played a couple of hours and managed to run up a decent stack. On Day 2 the field was surprisingly soft and I built a huge stack, ran card dead the last few tables and got it in on a flip. Again, I felt I didn’t do much wrong but I could have perhaps avoided the flip. I had a great chance for another juicy six figure score in that one, but it wasn’t meant to be.

BB: Looking more at the current year, have you continued to focus primarily on tournaments in Asia and specifically the APT in 2016?
SR: Having a kid has made the country hopping a little tougher so I have to really pick and choose which events outside of Asia to attend. I will of course once more be going for the APT POY. We got married in May and our stay in Europe extended into June so I just decided to take things month by month this year with not a lot of forward planning.

BB: Obviously five consecutive APT POY titles is now the current goal. Will it ever end?
SR: When I won the first title it was cool. Naturally I kept with the tour because I had my POY prize to spend. Then I won the second and I thought it would be rude not to make it three in a row. After winning the fourth, I am going all out this year to win the fifth. I have grand designs on aiming for 10 POY titles before calling it a day, but we are considering relocating to the UK next year. If we push through with that then this will probably be the last year I go for the title, so best to go out with a bang! It will be sad to leave as the APT has become like our poker family here, but I’m sure we would be able to visit a couple of stops a year.